- published: 10 Mar 2015
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Awka (Igbo: Ọka) is the capital of Anambra State, Nigeria with an estimated population of 301,657 As of 2006[update] Nigerian census. The city is located about 600 miles east of Lagos in the centre of the densely-populated Igbo heartland in southeastern Nigeria.
The West-East Federal highway links Lagos, Benin City, Asaba, Onitsha, and Enugu to Awka and several local roads link it to other important towns such as Ekwulobia, Agulu, Enugwu-Ukwu, Abagana and Nnewi.
Strategically, Awka is located midway between two major cities in Northern Igboland, Onitsha and Enugu which has informed its choice as an administrative center for the colonial authorities and today as a base for the Anambra State government.
Awka was famous for metal working and its blacksmiths before the 20th century and were prized throughout the region for making farming implements, guns and tools. The Awka area in earlier times was the site of the Nri Civilization that produced the earliest documented bronze works in Sub-Saharan Africa around 800 AD.